Mechanism for extruding coating material from an applicator



Jan. 20, 1970 c, RRIM N ET AL 3,490,415

MECHANISM FOR EXTRUDING COATING MATERIAL FROM AN APPLICATOR Original Filed March 15, 1967 4 Sheets-Sheet l i o R I I O N i FIG"! WIN a.

Q INVENTORS Allen fi Harri/nan ATTORNEY Jan. 20, 1970 A. c. HARRIMAN ET AL 3,490,415

MECHANISM FOR EXTRUDING COATING MATERIAL FROM AN APPLICATOR Original Filed March 13, 1967 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 1970 A. c. HARRIMAN ET AL MECHANISM FOR EXTRUDING COATING MATERIAL FROM AN APPLICATOR 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Original Filed March 13, 1967 FIG-l2 FIG.- [0

United States Patent US. Cl. 118-410 2 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE Apparatus for extruding coating material from an applicator during movement of the applicator. A pump is provided in a coating reservoir and is connected with the applicator. The pump includes a tube, a sleeve mounted on the tube for sliding movement and to provide a chamber between the sleeve and the tube. The chamber is connected to the applicator and upon movement of the sleeve and the applicator, adhesive is forced from the applicator onto the substrate.

This is a division of application Ser. No. 622,517 filed Mar. 13, 1967.

There is disclosed herein a machine for applying a coating of thermoplastic stiffening material to a shoe component so as to enable the stitfening material to adhere to the shoe component. The machine includes a mask, upon which the shoe component is supported, having an opening corresponding in shape to the desired contour of the stilfener, a pad which is caused to hold the workpiece against the mask, a means for drawing the portion of the workpiece above the mask opening upwardly into a mound to provide a space between the mask and the mound whose cross-section corresponds to the desired cross-sectional configuration of the stiffener, a means for causing the portion of the shoe component that lies above-the mask opening to :bear against the bottom of the mound and a means to apply the coating material into the mask opening so that it may fill the space within the mask opening and adhere to the portion of the workpiece bearing against the mound.

This invention relates to a pumping mechanism for applying the coating material to the mask. This mechanism includes a sleeve mounted on a tube for sliding movement with a closed chamber provided between the tube and the sleeve. The applicator is connected to the sleeve for movement therewith during the work stroke and conduit means are provided between the applicator and the chamber for enabling coating material to flow from the chamber through the applicator. Means are provided, that are operative during the work stroke, to force the coating material into the chamber to enable the coating material to be pumped from the chamber through the conduit means and the applicator.

In the drawings:

FIGURE 1 is a side elevation of the machine;

FIGURE 2 is a front elevation of the main frame of the machine;

FIGURE 3 is a section taken on the line 3-3 of FIG- URE 2;

FIGURE 4 is a section taken on the line 44 of FIGURE 3;

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FIGURE 5 is a view taken on the line 55 of FIG- URE 3;

FIGURE 6 is a section taken on the line 6-6 of FIGURE 5;

FIGURE 7 is a view taken on the line 77 of FIG- URE 6;

FIGURE 8 is a view taken on the line 8-8 of FIG- URE 6;

FIGURE 9 is a section taken on the line 9-9 of FIGURE 3;

FIGURE 10 is a representation of a workpiece in the machine at the beginning of the machine cycle;

FIGURE 11 is a representation of a workpiece in the machine later in the machine cycle; and

FIGURE 12 is a representation of the workpiece as it appears at the completion of the machine cycle.

The machine comprises a main frame 10 having a tank 12 rigidly secured thereto. The operator is intended to stand to the left of the machine as seen in FIGURE 1, and a direction extending from right to left as seen in FIGURE 1 will be referred to as forward while a direction extending from left to right as seen in FIG- URE 1 will be referred to as rearwar Referring to FIGURES l-3 and 5, an air operated motor 14 is pivoted to the front of the frame 10'on a pin 16. The upwardly extending piston rod 18 of the motor 14 is secured to a rod 20, and the rod 20 is rotatably mounted in a pair of ears 22 that are secured to and extend forwardly of a sub-frame 24. The subframe 24 is pivotally mounted on a pair of pins 26 mounted to the main frame 10 for swinging movement about the horizontal axes of these pins.

A flange 28 is welded to a bar 30 that is at the rear of the sub-frame 24. An air actuated motor 32, secured to the flange 28, has a forwardly directed piston rod 34 that extends over the tank 12. A brace 36 is welded to the bar 30 and extends downwardly into the tank 12. A block 38 (FIGURES 3 and 4), secured to the bottom of the brace 36, has a transversely extending hole 40 therein that is closed at its ends. A pair of laterally spaced tubes 42 and 44, threaded into the block 38, respectively have holes 46 and 48 that are each in communication with an end of the hole 40. A brace 50, secured to the front of the piston rod 34, extends downwardly into the tank 12. The bottom of the brace 50 is secured to a hollow sleeve 52 (FIGURES 3, 4 and 9) that is slidably mounted on the tube 42. A port 54 provides communication between the tank 12 and the hollow interior 56 of the sleeve 52. A ball valve 58 is mounted in the sleeve 52 for movement between a valve seat 60 and a pin 62 that straddles the hollow sleeve interior 56. When seated against the valve seat 60, the ball 58 blocks flow of liquid through the port 54. When the ball 58 is bearing against the pin 62, liquid may flow through the port 54 and around the ball 58.

Referring to FIGURES 3 and 5, a rod 64 is rotatably mounted to and extends between a hanger 66 secured to the front of the sub-frame 24 and a bar 68 secured to the brace 36. A stop member 70 is threaded onto the bar 64 and is slidably mounted on the piston rod 34. Rotation of the rod 64, by means of a knob 72 secured to its front end, will therefore adjust the position of the stop member 70 in forward-rearward directions along the piston rod 34.

An air actuated motor 74, secured to the flange 28, has a forwardly extending piston rod 76. As seen in FIG- URES 3 and 5, the piston rod 76 is secured to an applicator mount 78. The applicator mount 78 is mounted for forward-rearward movement in the sub-frame 24 by means of rolls 80 on the applicator mount that are re ceived in tracks 82 in the sub-frame and rolls 84 that bear against the sub-frame walls.

Referring to FIGURES 3, 4 and 9, the hole 48 terminates rearwardly of the front end of the tube 44 to providea solid portion 86 for the tube 44 between the front of this tube and the hole 48. A sleeve 88 is slidably mounted on the tube 44 by means of end caps 90 that are threaded into the ends of the sleeve and are snugly mounted to the tube for sliding movement, Radial ports 92 provide communication between the front end of the hole 48 and an annular chamber 94 that is between the tube 44 and the sleeve 88. The sleeve 88 is secured to the bottom of a base 96, and the top of the base 96 is bolted to an applicator 98. The applicator 98 is also bolted to a pair of flanges 100 (FIGURES and 9) that form a part of the applicator mount 78.

As seen in FIGURES 69, the applicator 98 comprises a blade 102 that is clamped between a bracket 104 and a cap 106. The blade 102 terminates in a sharp scraping edge 108, and a space 110 is provided between the blade 102 and the bracket 104. The sleeve 88 has a port 112 (FIGURES 3 and 9) that provide communication between the annular chamber 94 and a passage114 in the base 96. The passage 114 intersects a cut-out 116 in the top of the base 96, and the cut-out 116 is in communication with passages 118, 120, and 122 in the bracket 104. The passages 118, 120 and 122 intersect a cut-out 124 in the bracket 104 and the cut-out 124 is in communication with the space 110. A ball valve 126 in the passage 114 is movable between a valve seat 128 and a pin 130 extending across the passage. In the former position the ball 126 blocks the passage 114 and in the latter position fluid may move through the passage 114 around the ball 126.

In the idle condition of the machine: the piston rod 18 is retracted into the motor 14 so that the sub-frame 24 is swung into a lowered position about the axes of the pins 26; the piston rod 34 is projected out of the motor 32; and the piston rod 76 is projected out of the motor 74.

A block of thermoplastic coating material, that is solid at ambient temperature, becomes molten and adherent when heated above a predetermined temperature and reverts to its solid condition when cooled below the predetermined temperature, is placed on grids 256 (FIGURE 5) that form a part of the tank 12. Heaters such as the electric heaters 258, 260 and 262 (FIGURE 2) melt the block of coating material so that the molten adhesive flows into the tank to such a level as to cover the parts shown in FIGURE 4 (see FIGURE 3). The molten coating material gravitates through the port 54, around the ball valve 58, through the sleeve 56, the tube 42, the block 38, the tube 44, the ports 92, the annular chamber 94 and the port 112 into the passage 114.

The machine includes a mask 150 (FIGURES l0 and 11) that is clamped to a work frame 142 (FIGURE 1). The mask 150, which is positioned above the tank 12, has an opening 154.

A counter base 264 (FIGURES and 11) is deposited on the mask 150 in such a manner that it covers the mask opening 154. A pad 190 (FIGURES 1 and 11) is now lowered against the mask 150 and the counter base 264 and suction is applied through a hole 202 to cause the portion of the counter base 264 that is below a mound 268 that is formed in the pad 190 to be sucked upwardly and bear against the bottom of the mound.

After this, the motors 14, 32 and 74 are concomitantly actuated to thereby project the piston rod 18 out of the motor 14, retract the piston rod 34 into the motor 32 and retract the piston rod 76 into the motor 74.

The actuation of the air operated motor 14 causes the subframe 24 to be yieldably urged upwardly in a clockwise direction (FIGURE 3) about the axes of the pins 26 to thereby yieldably urge the applicator 98 against the bottom of the mask 150 in a location that is forward of the counter base 264.

The actuation of the motor 32 causes the sleeve 52 to move rearwardly which in turn causes the ball valve 58 to seat against the valve seat 60 and thereby block the port 54. The actuation of the motor 74 causes the appli cator mount 78 to move rearwardly in the sub-frame 24 to thereby move the applicator 98 rearwardly in a work stroke with the sleeve 88 sliding rearwardly on the tube 44. During the rearward movement of the applicator 98, the rearward movement of the sleeve 52 causes coating material to be pumped from the sleeve 52 through the tube 46, the block 38, the tube 48, the ports 92, the annular chamber 94, the port 112, the passage 114, around the unseated ball valve 126 (which is now forced upwardly against the pin and through the cut-out 116, the passages 118, 120 and 122, the cut-out 124 and the space 108 onto the mask immediately to the rear of the scraping edge 108. The abutment of a nut 270 (FIG- URES 3 and 5 that is secured to the front of the piston rod 34, with the stop member 70 determines the end of the stroke of the piston rod 34 and of the pumping movement of the sleeve 52.

During its work stroke the applicator 98 continuously extrudes molten coating material through the space 110 against the mask 150, an electric heating cartridge 272 (FIGURES 5 and 6) helping to maintain the coating material molten during its passage through the applicator. As the coating material is extruded it is scraped along the mask undersurface by the scraping edge 108 of the applicator 98, this scraping action being augmented due to the applicator being yieldably urged upwardly by the motor 14. During its work stroke the applicator straddles and moves under and across the mask opening 154 and applies the coating material onto the counter base 264 to fill the space between the mask opening 154 and the bottom of the counter base 264 with a coating 274 (FIGURE 12) of coating material, which coating adheres to the counter base to form a counter 27 6.

After the completion of the work stroke of the applicator 98, tse motor 14 is actuated to lower the sub-frame 24 to its idle position, the motor 32 is actuated to return the sleeve 52 to its idle position and the motor 74 is actuated to return the applicator mount 78 to its idle position. At the same time, the pad is raised from the mask 150.

We claim:

1. A mechanism for extruding coating material from an applicator during the movement of the applicator in a work stroke comprising: a tube; a sleeve mounted on the tube for sliding movement; means so constructing the sleeve and the tube as to define a chamber therebetween that is closed at its ends; an applicator connected to the sleeve for movement therewith; conduit means between the applicator and the chamber for enabling coating material to flow from the chamber through the applicator; means for moving the applicator through a work stroke which causes the sleeve to move along the tube; and means, operative during the work stroke, for forcing coating material into the chamber, thereby enabling the coating material to be pumped through the conduit means and from the applicator.

2. The mechanism as defined in claim 1 further comprising: a tank adapted to contain a supply of the coating material; a second tube located in the tank so as to be immersed in the coating material; means pr viding communication between an end of the second tube and the chamber so as to enable the coating material to flow therebetween; a second sleeve, so located in the tank as to be immersed in the coating material, mounted on the second tube for sliding movement; a port on the second sleeve providing communication between the interior of the second sleeve and the coating material in the tank; valve means so connected as to normally permit flow of coating material through the port and to block the port during movement of the second sleeve toward said end of the second tube; and means for moving the second sleeve toward said end of the second tube concomitantly with the movement of the applicator through its work stroke to thereby pump the coating material from the applicator.

6 References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,422,990 6/1947 Spanier 222321 X 2,602,189 7/1952 Finelt 222321 X 3,033,160 5/1962 Steidinger 1l8--411 WALTER A. SCHEEL, Primary Examiner J. P. MCINTOSH, Assistant Examiner US. Cl. X.R. 

